Zoo

Harvesting weeping willow for the bunnies

A young weeping willow tree growing by a creek.

Over the past few years, I have been harvesting weeping willow with Joyce from Elvis Parsley Store to make healthy fresh dried wreaths for the bunnies as a low-cost well-favored snack. They’re also great to have on hand for stasis episodes, as not only does willow contain natural aspirin, but they are also very tempting to rabbits and useful to judge their appetite with.

Rabbits enjoying a freshly dried willow wreath.

Weeping willow is often found next to lakes, creeks, and rivers and are generally considered an invasive species. They can also be grown as a fast-growing decorative tree in yards – if you know a neighbor with a tree, they often won’t turn down the help to keep the growth in check!

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Taking care of foster kittens with ringworm

Black mewmews

Black mewmews at the vet. Ringworm was evident with the balding chest area on the fuzzy kitten and minor hair loss on the face and crusts above the nose. July 31, 2016.

My first foray into fostering kittens in August 2016 was through Save a Kitten (SAK), a campaign by San Jose Animal Advocates in partnership with the City of San Jose Animal Care and Services (SJACS). During kitten season (approximately April to October), kittens that need around-the-clock care are often at high risk of euthanasia. Kittens at risk that need to be fostered usually have medical or behavior issues such as antisocial behavior, fur loss, eating disorders, eye discharge, upper respiratory infections, and bottle-feeding. (more…)

Monitoring Your Rabbits Remotely

Sleeping bunnies, Foscam FI8910W, 240p.

Relaxing bunnies.

Being able to watch your rabbits — and any other pet, really — when you are not home can be very comforting (and entertaining) when you are off at work or on vacation. It can give you a great peace of mind when you can see your rabbit visually hopping around on your phone or computer screen and not loafing in pain in a corner. Personally, I had never thought of monitoring my rabbits remotely until the instance a couple years ago when the fire alarm went off in the apartment, and the bunnies freaked out in their x-pen and almost bashed their brains out.

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